Boba Fett: Knight in Tarnished Armor
by NS7
Summary: First in an ongoing "series". Boba Fett is hired to save a pricess from a group of Tuskens and a fierce Krayt Dragon.


Author's Note: Okay, you know the whole "I don't own it." crap a million times over, so I won't say anymore. But, I will tell you how this works. I can't upload a tab on the site, so double spacing marks indents. Also, this is to become an ongoing series, portrayed like a TV show, thus there will be guest stars. A guest star will have roughly the same name, for example, an upcoming "episode" features Lara Croft as "Lar-rah Groph". Groph is the same as Lara, except in Star Wars terms, i.e., she will be an intergalactic adventurer, with a past more like Star Wars. So, same looks, personality and characteristics, just different "storyline", get it? Okay, anyhow, on with the first episode.  
  
Along time ago in a galaxy far, far away.  
  
STAR WARS  
  
BOBA FETT: EPISODE I  
  
KNIGHT IN SHINNING ARMOR  
  
Years after the birth of the New Republic, the dessert planet of Tatoonie has begun a monarchy ruled by the customs and family by a nearby planet. Abandoning its lawless ways, the planet heads towards prosperity.  
  
Considering this a threat to their way of life, a group of Tusken Raiders has kidnapped a princess, Candina. Therore, King of Tatoonie, has been told that if he does not leave the planet, his daughter will be killed.  
  
Therore, desperate to get his daughter back, cannot trust the Tuskens. Instead of complying, he has sent a message to a bounty hunter.  
  
  
  
The stars shone bright as the Slave IV one passed them silently. Aboard the ship, however, was a different story.  
  
"You must help me, Boba Fett." the gray bearded man pleaded, tears in his eyes. He was tinted a light blue, due to the computer screen his vid-link image was appearing on.  
  
The bounty hunter sat silent, working on a new Blastech EE-3 rifle he had recently purchased. He did not make eye contact with Therore once.  
  
"The reward?" he asked, still turned away.  
  
"150,000." said the man.  
  
"For rescuing a princess." Fett said, more a statement then a question.  
  
"150,000." the man repeated. "Princess Candina, my daughter, unharmed and alive. I'll pay you an extra if you kill Gurr' Ak' Rah-dar, the Tusken who kidnapped her." he said, sniffing pathetically.  
  
"How much?" Fett inquired. He still did not look at Therore.  
  
"40,000 upon proof of his death. I will send you a holo of the fiend, if you wish." Therore said, a glimmer of hope in his voice.  
  
Fett didn't even move. "Very well." Fett replied. "You said something about a message." Fett said in what was undoubtedly an order of some kind.  
  
"Oh, yes." Therore complied. His voice trailed off. "A protocol droid arrived from the desert, said he had an ultimatum. Rah-dar has told us through a droid they stole from a Jawa camp that if we do not leave Tatoonie, the monarchy, he will feed Candina to a Krayt Dragon!" At this, the king sobbed.  
  
So the rumors are true. Tuskens know more about the universe than suspected. Fett thought, remembering a report he had read on the holo-net. A scientist had reported that Tuskens are more organized and intelligent than previously thought. The Tuskens, according to the scientist, understood Tatoonie and it's ways quite well for nomads. The Tuskens apparently know what a protocol droid is, too, Fett thought.  
  
"How did the Tuskens get a Dragon?" Fett asked.  
  
Therore pulled himself together and continued. "A while ago, a Dragon accidentally fell into a crevice, a couple of moisture farmers saw this, and a group of Tuskens built a small camp inside the crevice. In between the camp and the monster, thought, is a large rock wall with a hole at the bottom large enough for a Tusken to pass through, but not the Dragon." Therore choked back a sob. "But we've heard that the Tuskens have been feeding carcasses and prisoners to the Dragon."  
  
Boba Fett nearly chuckled. If the Tuskens are getting smarter, they're going towards the wrong way on the evolutionary scale. Jabba would be proud.  
  
Then Fett thought about the irony. A princess. A king. A dragon. It reminded him of an old story his father had told him as a boy;  
  
"And in that moment, as the dragon roared below him, the brave knight threw down a bag of dust and the smoke distracted the dragon. The knight lifted his sword and threw it into the dragon's open mouth, something that had never been accomplished before.  
  
"The sword came out through the other side of the dragon's neck and it fell for a final time, and thus the brave knight had saved the princess."  
  
Fett thought for a moment. "I am not a knight." Fett said. "Get a Jedi."  
  
"I can't." said Therore. "Rah-dar has a ysalamiri skeleton in a pouch on his belt."  
  
This got Boba Fett's attention. "How did a Tusken get a ysalamiri?" Fett pondered aloud. An ysalamiri created a bubble in the force that hindered force users. Even the skeleton of one caused this effect, though on a smaller scale.  
  
"Rah-dar traveled off Tatoonie with his brother, Hoar, to train with Arden Lyn." Therore explained.  
  
Arden Lyn. Fett remembered her. In one of the few missions he accepted from the Alliance, he was hired to protect Skywalker, Solo, Leia and Chewbacca from her and her group. Though the battles that ensued were unknown to the general public, Fett enjoyed killing Hoar and fighting his impersonator, Jodo Kast.  
  
"He got a skeleton before returning to Tatoonie, when he started this rebellion." Therore finished. "Will you help?"  
  
Fett sighed and finally looked at Therore. "I will require an escaped pod as a supply fee, plus an additional 4,000 credits for expenses."  
  
"Done!" Therore agreed.  
  
"Have the reward ready when I arrive." Fett said, reaching to deactivate the screen.  
  
"And Fett, be careful of with my daughter."  
  
"As you wish." and the screen went blank.  
  
  
  
The Slave IV landed 100 meters from the crevice that was the Tusken campsite. The cargo bay door opened, and then the entrance ramp slid down to the ground. Fett drove down and towards the Tusken camp on a small swoop bike. When he got to the edge of the cliff, he got off and zoomed his helmet's sensors to the other side of the canyon.  
  
There were three dark holes there, a perfect place for an ambush. Fett went to the bike and got a small box out of a compartment.  
  
He walked back and sat the box down and removed a tri-pod and placed it next to the box. He followed that by attaching a three-pronged device and adjusted each "cylinder" so it pointed at an individual hole.  
  
Fett went back to the bike and returned with a bag. He brought out a thermal detonator and punched in a few commands, the returned it to the bag. He sat the bag down and placed it extremely close to the edge of what appeared to be a way down his side of the cliff.  
  
Boba Fett got onto his bike and left.  
  
A bounty hunter walked into a bar. A couple of Jawas saw him and scurried out, whispering something. Fett let them go.  
  
The moment he strode all the way inside, the band stopped. Fett had not been in this cantina for a long time. If he remembered right, Greedo had been killed here by Solo. All conversation stopped, as did he, in the middle of the bar.  
  
The Mandalorian clad hunter stood motionless as all eyes gazed at him, fearful that they were his target.  
  
A bith in the corner pulled out a blaster pistol but one look from Fett made him put it away slowly.  
  
Boba Fett finally spoke. "I require a ship that has an escape pod. Who ever volunteers to both supply and fly such a ship will be paid 4,000 credits and be given a replacement pod." he finished.  
  
No one responded the way Fett wanted, so the bounty hunter looked for another "clue". A fat twi' lek in the back moved uneasily. Fett nearly smiled inside his helmet.  
  
He walked over to the table casually and stood there when he noticed a beautiful togruta that sat beside him.  
  
She got up and walked away quickly and quietly.  
  
Boba Fett's helmet didn't move at all, he just kept staring at the twi' lek. The fat alien wore green pants and a red vest, and unfortunately, nothing under the open vest.  
  
Fett just continued to stare, a tactic that usually scared those that Fett wanted to intimidate without even having to move.  
  
This time was no exception.  
  
"Okay, okay!" the alien gave up. "I have a ship. What do you want from mew?" he said meekly.  
  
Fett noticed the alien's eyes bug out for a split second. A sign of surprise. Fett checked his 360 degrees HUD inside his helmet. The bith from before was charging at him from behind, blaster rising.  
  
Fett decided to show all in the cantina he was not to be toyed with. Instead of just shooting his attacker, he activated his magnetic hook on the top of the missile on his jetpack without firing the line. The bith wasn't holding on hard enough, and it slipped out of his hand and flew to the missile tip.  
  
The alien tried to stop his charge and stomped hard, gravity causing him to slide.  
  
Fett took one step back and allowed the bith to slide right into his jetpack, knocking the fool over. Fett used his wrist lasers to shoot finish the bith that lay behind him without even turning to do so.  
  
The crowd gasped and Fett pushed the twi' lek back into his seat with one hand after he rose, probably to escape. Fett sat opposite the terrified pilot.  
  
I need you to fly me out to the Dune Sea. You will jettison me inside of the escape pod near a crevice. Then you will fly to Therore's palace on the outskirts of this city and request your payment and the replacement pod. If they ask, tell them I sent you." Fett said, as if the alien had no choice. He didn't.  
  
"And if I refuse.?" the twi' lek asked, already afraid of the answer.  
  
"The I won't pay you and I won't replace your pod. Either way, you're doing this, by force if necessary. Your cooperation will make things easier, but it is not necessary." Fett said, indifferent.  
  
The alien complied and showed Fett to his ship.  
  
  
  
"We're over the crevice now." the twi' lek said, piloting his Corellian YT- 2400 craft over the sand. It was the same type of ship as that Rebel, Dash Rendar, Fett had realized when he first saw it.  
  
The alien gulped down his toonisha ale and waited for Fett's response. There was none.  
  
Suddenly, the bounty hunter's voice came over the ship's intercom. "I am in the pod. Launch me now. If I believe you are attempting to betray me, I will detonate a bomb I have placed in your cockpit. Do not attempt to find it. Any attempts to disarm it will cause it to explode. Do you understand?" Fett said, not caring for a response.  
  
He got none.  
  
The twi' lek launched the pod. After a moment he powered down the ship's lasers.  
  
  
  
Candina saw the falling object from where she was shackled to the cliff wall. A bunch of her captors snorted and headed off towards where the object would land. She instantly felt pity for anyone that might be inside.  
  
Fo' Dun' Ma stepped closely to the large object. It looked like a "sbayz jip", or whatever Others called them.  
  
Ran' Dig' Ma, Fo' Dun's brother, walked behind him, gaderffii raised and poised to strike.  
  
"We can't allow 'rinezz' to be taken back." Another Tusken said in their native language. The Tusken was Gall Agg.  
  
This 'rinezz' was valuable to them. That's what Rah-dar had told them. When he was off planet with the late Hoar, he had learned much about Others, like their tribes' rules. Their High One was called a 'ging', and his young were called 'rinz' or 'rinezz'.  
  
The 'ging' would give up and make Others leave Tuskens alone. Once again, Tuskens would rule the sand. All they had to do was send the 'jroyd' to the 'sidy' to tell the High One its orders.  
  
As Fo' Dun' walked closer to the 'jip', a large panel opened and they could see nothing inside. It was dark-  
  
Suddenly, a laser bolt came out of the object and caught Fo' Dun' in the chest. Ran' Dig' ran and thrust his gadeffii's jagged, metal edge into the darkness and swirled it around. Then he felt a tug at the other end and was pulled into the 'jip'.  
  
Gall didn't want to be next, and they couldn't let the camp be compromised, so he turn and ran, fear developing inside of him.  
  
  
  
Boba Fett walked out of the pod as the last Tusken ran away. Their primitiveness had gotten the better of them. Who would think one could hide on the ceiling? Boba Fett deactivated the artificial gravity projector that was located in the floor, or what had been come the ceiling thanks to Fett's piloting. Increasing the strength of the projector had been easy.  
  
Fett fell to the "floor" and landed on his feet. He walked out and looked at the Raider's tracks. He glanced towards the direction they went towards and followed them at a quick pace.  
  
  
  
Gall arrived shortly at the camp. It had been a short run, but he was still tired. He told the others what had happened and they wondered what to do.  
  
"Feed the 'rinezz' to the 'gradon'." Rah-dar said.  
  
  
  
Candina's pink dress was covered in filth as her captors dragged her to some hole in a large stonewall. She kicked and screamed, but a Tusken hit her, shutting her up. She didn't cry. She wouldn't. But she was afraid when she heard the roars.  
  
  
  
Boba Fett saw all of this from his perch. The princess had purple hair and a pink dress that was very, very dirty. Even with her cuts and bruises, she was quite pretty. She was tan, thin and had a good figure.  
  
Fett looked on as Tuskens emerged from various huts. The he heard the Krayt Dragon roar.  
  
Boba Fett powered up his Blastech rifle and stood.  
  
  
  
Princess Candina was terrified. She could see the monster that lay in wait on through the gate. She saw something bluish-gray and green in the corner of her eye, but in her horror, she ignored it.  
  
  
  
Boba Fett slid down the slanted cliff face as the sand tumbled around him. A large amount of Tuskens saw him and headed towards him. They were all screaming. Fett heard projectiles being fired from the three holes. As he thought, there were snipers. He pressed the button on a device he had strapped to his side and the tripod shot out three missiles, one to each respective hole. Boba Fett ignored the screams.  
  
In front of him, the Tuskens got closer and Fett lobbed a detonator ahead of him that burst into smoke.  
  
The startled Tuskens stopped and watched the ball of smoke as the warrior burst through it, flying. He dropped another detonator into their midst and this one exploded; sending limbs everywhere.  
  
A gaderffii was thrown like a spear at him, and Fett dodged it by flipping in air. As he came around, he shot the Tusken who through it.  
  
He landed and went into a sprint towards the hole that led into the Dragon's dwellings. The jagged end of a gaderffii swung out in front of him, and he bent over and boosted a few feet as the club end of another gaderffii came crashing down right behind him.  
  
Fett saw it was Rah-dar. Therore had sent a picture of him. The only distinguishing marks on him were the shards of metal that he had stuck into his forehead and on the top of his head. Part of some strange ritual, Fett supposed.  
  
Rah-dar swung a stick, but Fett caught hold of the end and held on. When the High One of the Tuskens swung the other weapon, Fett pulled the other stick to block it. Rah-dar snorted something but Fett ignored it.  
  
Rah-dar pushed hard and shoved Fett to the ground. The bounty hunter slid on the sand and came up with his flamethrower activated. Rah-dar jumped to the side of the flames and threw a gaderffii at Fett. This one hit his helmet.  
  
Fett fell backwards, dazed; as he saw Rah-dar jump into the air and bring the gaderffii down to impale him. Fett rolled to the right and the Tusken missed. As he turned to look at Fett, the bounty hunter shot him with kyber dart, right between the eyes.  
  
Fett walked to the convulsing body and used his utility knife to scalp off the metal shards and skin.  
  
With his proof collected, Fett made his way to the Dragon. In his HUD display, he saw the rest of the Tuskens approaching.  
  
  
  
Candina saw the mask and knew who it was instantly. Boba Fett. The red around the visor gave it away, instantly.  
  
He got the Dragon's attention by blasting it in the back of the head, but that didn't make it flinch due to its strong hide.  
  
Fett flew up and onto a ledge on the cliff face and the Dragon followed him on its four legs, leaving the girl. It roared as it anticipated its meal.  
  
And in that moment, as the dragon roared below him, the Boba Fett threw down another smoke detonator and the smoke distracted the dragon. The bounty hunter bent over and shot his jetpack missile into the dragon's open mouth.  
  
The missile came out through the other side of the Dragon's neck and it fell for a final time, and Boba Fett saved the princess.  
  
But there were still Tusken's on their way. Fett flew down to the ground to the princess, who ran to him as well. "Thank you." she said desperately.  
  
"Are you alright?" he asked, though he didn't wait for an answer. He lifted her up onto his shoulder and flew up and onto the sand dune above the crevice. Fett hated this planet.  
  
He put the princess down and pointed to his ship. "Go!" he commanded. She would have been terrified had he not obviously been trying to save her.  
  
Fett ran to the bag he placed before and shoved it off the edge, down to the path leading up from the canyon. The chain reaction of ten detonators going off at once destroyed the path, leaving a large gap in between two parts of the path. Now the Tuskens would have to follow on foot. No bantha could get over the large, jagged rocks in the crater the bombs had caused.  
  
Fett ran to his ship, the Slave IV, and a moment later, it lifted off.  
  
  
  
"Daddy" Candina yelled as she thrust her arms around Therore.  
  
"Daughter..." he wept, hugging her just as tight.  
  
Boba Fett leaned against the wall of the throne chamber a moment and then stood, uncrossing his arms. He approached the two after giving them a moment.  
  
"Here." Fett acknowledged as he handed Therore the scalping with the metal shards. "What of my reward?" he asked, disregarding the princess.  
  
"It has been transferred to your account." Therore said, wiping away more tears. He handed Fett a data pad. Fett punched in his credit account number and saw that the king said the truth. He handed Therore the pad back.  
  
Boba Fett spun on his heels and strode to the chamber doors.  
  
"Wait!" Therore hollered. "Stay and be knighted!", then he thrust an arm up to add to the request an air of drama.  
  
Fett stopped and sighed. "I am no one's knight. I have my own morals. I can not waste them with just one 'kingdom'." And then he left.  
  
After a moment, Therore whispered; "The traveling knights always were the bravest. and the most noble."  
  
  
  
Well? Did you like it? I hope you did. This is just the start! Here's a small 'scene' from the next episode!  
  
"I can't tell you!" Bagar yelled. "He'll kill me!!!" he cried.  
  
Fett's grip tightened around the mercenary's throat. Fett leaned in closer and rasped;  
  
"And I won't?"  
  
Seem suspenseful? Hope it does.  
  
Fett goes to a medical facility to regain his youth and have clone body parts grafted to him, but an entire mercenary/assassin group arrives with orders to kill the young-again bounty hunter. Who has hired them and what are this fiend's reasons? Find out the answers to these questions and learn more as I introduce the series' main villain in the next episode of Star Wars: Boba Fett; Midlife Crisis! 


End file.
